


No Body Knows

by Kittykat9876



Category: SHINee
Genre: Abuse, Angst, Eventual Romance, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, highschool
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-09
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-08-21 06:25:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16571363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kittykat9876/pseuds/Kittykat9876
Summary: Not everyone has a wonderful life. Somewhere along the road, someone has to be unfortunate. Someone has to show that life isn't perfect. Not everyone gets a happy story. But if they're lucky enough, some might just get a happy ending.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on asianfanfics but now re-edited with some changes.

A boy ran through the winding streets, dodging potholes and trash-bags as he ran. The urge to turn around and see how close his pursuers were was unrelenting but he knew that it would be unwise to give in. He tried to bury the urge with a fresh burst of speed, adrenaline pumping through his body to give him an extra boost. 

He couldn’t turn around, he knew from all those horror movies that turning around would be his downfall. There was no way that he could risk it, no way that he wanted to become the victim that he and his friends always screamed at for their stupid choices. 

But like in every horror movie, the temptation to look gnawed at him and he felt himself looking before he could consciously stop it. 

It was only a quick glance, hardly enough to see anything but more than enough to cause his running steps to twist his body sideways. Too close to a brick wall, his arm scraped roughly against the red rough surface bringing then scent of iron and the sight of blood. 

His ankle twisted in a deep groove in the road where the patching had been worn away from decades of footsteps. The ground came up too quickly for him to save himself, for anything other than to just hit bottom. Trying to limit the damage of his fall, hands shot out and only succeeded in being scratched raw, cuts filled with tiny bits of gravel and asphalt. 

Head bashing hard against the ground, he heard the sound of cartilage snapping as his nose broke and his right cheekbone shattered. Everything went momentarily quiet as the blood pounded in his head.

Then with a rush, the sound came back. It was filled with shouts and cheering, though not a happy sound. It was a dark, terrifying sound. Heavy footsteps slowed as the boy attempted to get to his feet, only succeeding in dragging sore knees and making them ache worse. 

“Look, he’s trying to run away.” A deep male voice spoke, the leader of the attackers. 

A high pitched squealing laugh caused the downed boy to flinch as he continued to try and get away. 

“You’ve been digging in places that you have no business in being in.” The leader continued, his voice getting colder and closer. His large hand curled around the boy’s snapped ankle and squeezed. 

The youngest cried out in pain and then bit his lip to try and mute the sound. He couldn’t give them the satisfaction of knowing they were hurting him. Even if they killed him, he wouldn’t let them know how badly they had hurt him. 

A tug on the foot sent him kissing the ground again. 

“If you had just left well enough alone you wouldn’t be in this position.” The leader continued, releasing the ankle and moving to lean down and whisper in the youngest’s ear. “Think of the things I could do to you.” 

Through watery eyes he glimpsed dark hair and cold grey eyes. His vision wavered and he couldn’t decide if the man’s nose was too small for his face or if his sight was failing. 

Laying on the ground, the boy shuddered, he knew what they were planning. After all, he had ignored their warnings. Closing his eyes, he felt a tear slip down his bloody cheek. Whispering a prayer as his attacker stood and moved back, he prayed that they would make it quick. He would rather die than live with the pain. 

“Go.” 

A gasp left his throat as he felt the first boot hit. A loud crack and a bubble of frothy blood in his mouth told him that at least one broken rib had punctured a lung. His breathing became shallow and the amount of oxygen getting to his brain diminished. Terror filled his mind and he closed his eyes. 

He refused to let the darkness of the alley and the sight of his attackers faces be the last thing his mind saw. Instead he picked his friends, his parents and the photograph that he carried always in his wallet. 

“Look at me.” A sneering voice said, waiting until the boots left his side. The boy refused, squeezing his eyes shut tighter. 

A long fingered hand grasped his hair and pulled. “I said, LOOK AT ME!” Spit flew as the angry words came, but still his eyes remained shut. 

Frustration came out in a scream from the figure in front of him and the boy on the ground felt the hand clench and then without a warning his face was slammed into the pavement. Lifted up, it was slammed down again and again until it left a bloody, disfigured mess. 

Finally the bloody boy cried out, barely conscious. 

His attackers released him then and the sounds of his raged breathing were the only things to be heard. 

Then the whispers began. 

“You went too far.” One hushed voice spoke. “We were supposed to scare him and not beat him half to death.”

A dark chuckle,”Its not half to death, I’m pretty sure he won’t live through the night.” 

“We were told by any and all means necessary. His search had to be stopped.” The leaders voice spoke, dark in its tone. “We tried to warn him, but he refused to listen to reason. He had plenty of chances.” The tone took on a self satisfied resonance. 

It was getting hard to stay awake and the beaten boy just wanted to lay his head down and die. The pain was too much, the fear even more so. He knew of the savage things they threatened to do and after this, he knew that they wouldn’t hesitate to perform some of the more gruesome tasks on their list. 

“His parents knew what would happen if they dug into the matter any further, they shouldn’t have let their only remaining son continue on their fools mission if they didn’t want him to come to such a tragic end.” The words became mocking at the end, as if they knew that their target was still teetering with unconsciousness and listening. 

But he couldn’t stay much longer as the blackness took him, his final thoughts were that he hoped all his hard work wasn’t for nothing. He hoped that his friends would find out what he had done and finished his work for him. 

His last regret was that he wouldn’t be there to see it to the end. To see him come home.


	2. Out of Place

The classroom was quiet with the soft sounds of pencils scratching and students whispering when the teacher’s phone pinged with a message. Looking up from her marking, the teacher picked up the handheld device and punched in a quick reply before standing up and walking over to the desk of her most reserved student. 

“Taylor, Principal Harmond would like to see you.” She said softly, the message she had received sending a sadness through her. “If you wouldn’t mind packing up your things, I’ll grab your test. I’ve just finished marking it.”

“Yes ma’am.” The copper haired boy replied as he closed his note book and tucked his pencil into a well worn case. Slipping everything into his backpack he stood up and pushed in his chair. He followed the young teacher to her desk where she dug through her stack of papers and handed over his. 

“Excellent job again.” She said, tapping the 98% on the top. “You forgot to show your work in question 57 so I had to take a mark off.”

Nodding Taylor flipped quickly to the question and read it over. He nodded again and opened his mouth to speak but was cut off.

“You had better hurry along to the office, Principal Harmond doesn’t like to be kept waiting.” She started to place her hand on her student’s arm but stopped. She couldn’t show her favouritism in front of the others, especially with the news that the poor boy was about to receive. 

“Thank you.” He said, heading towards the door and stopping just before he stepped out in to the hallway. “Thank you for teaching me this year, I learned a lot from you.”

“You’re welcome?” Her reply was confused, did he know what was in the principal’s message that she had received? 

“I’ll be moving again I assume.” He answered, answering her unasked question. “This has been my longest stay so far and you’ve been such an accommodating teacher. Thank you.” He left without another word, ignoring the increase in volume as his former fellow classmates began gossiping about what could possibly be happening. 

His steps echoed as he walked down the deserted hallway. The blue lockers that lined the way gave off a cold feeling and he had made it nearly to the end when he heard a voice call out his name. 

“Taylor! You finally decide that you’re not too good to skip?” A blond hair, short boy teased as he came around the corner. 

“Principal’s office.” Taylor said slowly, he worked hard to keep his slight Korean accent out of his voice. Most of the time he spoke without the little change to his voice, but when he felt certain strong emotions it became harder to fight. 

“What you do man?” Leaning against a locker, the blond boy gave a smirk.

“Pretty sure I’m moving again.” His answer came in a dull way, nothing to be upset over considering he had changed schools once already that year. It was nothing short of miraculous considering his usual turn over rate had an average of three schools, going as high as 7 in one year. 

Third grade had been a real bitch. 

“Dude you just got here!”

“Back in September.” He supplied, giving his friend a nudge. “Eric you’re on my locker.”

“Point?”

“I’m going to need to get my stuff.”

“But you’re on your way to the office?” Eric said slightly confused, he hadn’t know his friend to disobey a teacher’s order.

“Its easier for me to clear out my things now, before the principal makes me come back and do it when everyone is in the hallway.” He spun the dial on his lock, tugging it hard to open. The metal door banged against the other lockers loudly. 

There was only a handful of other school books inside, along with a paper bag with his school provided gym uniform and his half empty down-filled fifth hand jacket. Shoving his gym shoes in his backpack and his notebooks, Taylor hoped that the ripped seam would hold at least until he was able to get back to his latest foster house. 

He picked up the library book he had swiped from the school and bit his lip while he decided what to do with it. The old Korean language textbook hadn’t had its spine cracked when he found it and there were no return dates stamped in the cover. So he had figured that no one would notice if he took it. 

He ripped out the sensor strip and slipped it in his bag too. 

Gathering up the textbooks and placing his cloths on top, Taylor shut the door. 

“Walk me to the office?” He asked Eric, knowing that unless he was lucky enough to get assigned a new foster home in a near by city, he would likely never see his friend again. 

“Sure man, but I’m skipping chemistry so I’ll have to head off before we get there. That old bat of a secretary hates me.” He pushed off from his lean and the two boys started to walk. 

“Maybe if you actually attended more class than you skipped, Mrs. Baxter wouldn’t hate you so much.” Taylor let himself smirk. 

He got a punch to the arm for that retrospective. “Hey we can’t all be super smart genius types. Some of us have to set the bar low for ‘The Man.’” He cocked his fingers in the air as he referred to the school administration. 

“The 90s called, they want their expression back.” Taylor deadpanned, knowing that he was going to miss his friend’s griping. 

“China called, they want their eyes back.” The blond shot back.

“Racist much?” Taylor said, he wouldn’t miss the low-key racism that most of the student body the school subscribed to. “Also, I am Korean.” 

“Yeah but you’re like American-Korean.” They turned another corner and the clear glass walls of the office came into view. 

“Technically I’m just Korean. I wasn’t born here and something something can’t take the citizenship test until I’m “of legal age.” So not American.” His foster family like to remind him of that as often as they could. He debated on launching into a tirade on how referring to all people of asian descent as Chinese was a highly racist and inappropriate thing but knew that there was no point. 

He was going to be gone soon enough and it was something that was going to follow him wherever he went next. 

“Right, sorry dude.” Eric said rather distractedly. “Well I can see the top of old Batter’s desk so there is where I jump off. Later.” He punched Taylor’s arm again, missed the pained expression on the other’s face, and run off in the opposite direction. 

Rubbing his arm and feeling slightly grateful he was leaving his ‘friend’ and ashamed that the one time someone at least made the effort he was grateful to be leaving them, he headed to the door. 

“Was that Eric Pender I just saw running off?” The grey haired secretary asked with a smirk that said she already knew the answer. 

Taylor nodded. “Its chemistry time, he’s probably gone to the second floor boys to smoke.” 

“I’ll let the custodians know.” She smiled, typing a note into her computer before picking up a round blue and grey tin and setting it on the counter in front of her. “Chocolate chip.” She said with a smile, opening the lid and shaking the tin. “Take two.”

Smiling, Taylor moved forward and juggling his books to one arm, plucked two side plate sized cookies. They were still soft and chewy and slightly warm from having been resting on top of the computer tower. “Thank you.” He said before taking a large bite. 

He loved coming to the office because he was one of the few students that the old secretary liked well enough to slip her homemade cookies to. 

“Principal Harmond is on a phone call, so he said to have you take a seat and wait. He should be out in a minute.” 

Taylor nodded, finishing his cookie. The tin was pushed towards him again and he grinned, grabbing two more. 

Shuffling over to the well worn orange polyester chairs, Taylor took a seat and dropped his books on the little table beside him. 

Mrs. Baxter turned back to her work, typing something into her computer with the rapid speed of someone who had practiced typing for decades. She wouldn’t bother Taylor like many of his past secretaries would have, knowing that he wouldn’t really have anything he wanted to say. 

So Taylor let his head fall back, neck resting on the hard top of his seat. He closed his eyes to the florescent lighting and allowed his mind to drift. 

Where were they going to send him this time? He didn’t really have an deep connections to the State he was currently in and honestly his only real friend was a bit of a jerk. Making friends as the constantly new kid at school wasn’t easy, and to top it all off he was two grades ahead of his peers since he had a teacher who had realized that he had potential. 

It was nearly Christmas and had he made it to January, it would have been the first time he didn’t change schools for an entire semester. That didn’t look likely though, and Taylor would once again be preparing to be the new kid after break.

He wondered if he had time to quit his job or if he would simply disappear again, they owed him his last paycheque and regardless of where he was going to end up, money was always a necessity. Finding a new job would be a priority, hopefully he’d get good references and be able to pick something up quickly. He hated being at the total mercy of the foster family he lived with. 

Before his mind could delve into darker thoughts, the inner door to the principal’s office opened and a paunchy, slightly balding grey haired man walked out. He spoke a few hushed words to the secretary before turning on a smile and looking at Taylor. “Come in son, we need to have a chat.”

Taylor nodded, gulping hard as the bite of cookie he had just taken lodged in his throat. He coughed and thumped his chest as he followed the principal into his office. Sitting on the guest’s side of the large light wood desk was a can of Coke. The perspiration on the hand was slippery as Taylor picked up the can. 

“There isn’t an easy way to say this Taylor,” Mr. Harmond began gesturing for the boy to drink. Not many students received the preferential treatment but with the little bit of understanding of what Taylor had been through in his school career alone, the least Harmond could do was give the boy one comforting place. 

“I’ve been given up by my current foster family and will be replaced in another home, likely in another town or city.” He cracked the cold can and took a sip. He hummed in delight at the bubbly fizz of the carbonated drink. Pop was almost a luxury drink in the foster system and the handful of times he had enjoyed the drink were worth savouring. 

“I should have guessed that you would be a pro at this. I’m sorry to say.”

Taylor shrugged. “It happens, I’ve been told that I’m almost getting ready to age out of the system anyways. A couple more years and I’ll be on my own and not too many people want to adopt a teenage.” 

“I don’t really know what to say to that.” Mr. Harmond admitted ruefully, “I wish there was something that I could say or do.”

“Its okay. Honestly.” Taylor took another drink. “I assume that I’m leaving today.”

“Your social worker is on the way here. Traffic.” Harmond moved to gather some files together. “These are the forms you will need to take with you, most of your paperwork is electronic though so it won’t be took much to worry about.” He handed Taylor the pile. 

Taking it, Taylor gave a small smile. “I’ve had a good time here. The school is much nicer than some of the ones I’ve been too and the teachers are good?” He trailed off, not wanting to say the teachers were at least pretty okay at keeping the racist comments to a small minimum. 

“Well I’m glad that you enjoyed your time here, or as much as you can enjoy school.” He tried for a joke but it fell flat. 

They sat in silence for a moment and Taylor sipped his drink before Mr. Harmond cleared his throat. “I’m not sure that I’m exactly the person to tell you this but I don’t want to be blind-sided.” Taylor nodded, waiting. “The agency that you were placed with when you arrived here from Korea is revoking your Visa, they have decided that 13 years is long enough and you’re going to be sent back to Seoul.”

Secretly thrilled at the idea of going back to his home country, Taylor tried to keep the excitement off his face. Over the years he had learned that if something seemed too good to be true it usually was and even if it wasn’t if he was excited about it then something always happened to make it ‘fall through.’

“It has been decided that you will be attending a boarding school on a government scholarship.” He pulled out a pamphlet from his desk and slid it to Taylor. “It appears to be a top school and with your grades its unsurprising that you have a place there.”

“Hard work pays off?” Taylor teased, smiling a real smile this time as he looked at the large building on the front with a smiling male student on the front. He was going home.

“We always say that and you students don’t believe us until you get the proof right in front of you.” He paused. “There is one other thing.” He waited until Taylor set down his drink. 

“Your name isn’t Taylor Kim.”


	3. Chapter 3

Two weeks later, the boy formerly known as Taylor, was boarding a plane back to his home country. His hands shook uncontrollably as he shifted his small carry on bag on his shoulder and gave a shaky smile to the flight attendant leading him to his seat. 

The last time he had been on an airplane he was so young that he didn’t have a single memory about it. His heart hammered in his chest so badly that it felt like it was about to jump up and take residence in his throat. He managed to thank his flight attendant, a woman who gave him a sympathetic smile in return. 

His seat mate looked like he was probably around his age, except while his own hair was roughly dyed a coppery colour, his seat mate had obviously paid for an expensive cut and colour. The blond hair looked almost natural and if he couldn’t see that his seat mates closed eyes were almond shaped, he would have even guessed it was. 

Taking his seat careful not to bump his closed eye seat mate, the teen quickly buckled his seatbelt and shoved his bag under the seat in front of him. A soft huff from next to him made him jump but the boy next to him slept on. 

How much longer had he been on the plane to be asleep before boarding was even finished?

The fasten seat belt sign came on and everyone finished taking their seats. He didn’t pay much attention to the safety demonstration and gritted his teeth uncomfortably when the plane taxied down the runway and began to lift off. The pressure on his ears made them pop and he fought back the urge to cry out in pain. 

Closing his eyes, he didn’t realize that he had drifted off to an uneasy sleep until someone was shaking his shoulder. It was the flight attendant who had shown him to his seat. 

“Drink?” She asked him with a smile. 

He rubbed sleep from his eyes and blinked rapidly, trying to gain back his senses. “No thank you.” He said politely. From what he had gathered from tv movies, in flight drinks were expensive. He was given a very small amount of pocket money from his social worker before he was sent through the gates alone and he didn’t want to waste it before he even landed in Korea.

“Are you sure sweetie?” She asked softly, holding up a can of pop, “Dinner won’t be served for another two hours, we’re not quite halfway to our destination.”

Feeling awkward now, he bent over to pull his bag onto his lap. Sadly he pulled out his old and worn third-hand wallet and opened it. Aside from his student id, library card and a punch card for the coffee place he had worked at three foster homes ago, there was nothing in his wallet aside from the single twenty dollar bill. 

Tugging it out, he went to hand it to the lady but was stopped as the boy next to him handed over a black plastic card. “Two cokes please.” The sleep scratchy voice of his seat mate spoke. “And two bags of chips.” 

The attendant took the card and tapped it before handing over the items. A long well manicured hand reached out and took hold of the items and set them on the tray in front of his seat mate. The boy then thanked the attendant who moved to the next seat. 

Confused and holding his money, the teen made a soft sound like he wanted to call her back but couldn’t quite get the words out. 

“Here.” A can was pushed into his line of sight. “Generic knock off chips, but its better than nothing.” The bag was crinkled in anticipation. 

“Sorry?” He asked, confused by what was happening. 

“Kelly is a great flight attendant but she doesn’t always pick up on certain clues all the time.” The blond boy nodded at the sad looking wallet. “Let me guess, parents are sending you back home to visit family and cheaped out on the cash?”

Pushing the money back in its place and then back in his bag and under the seat slowly, the teen looked at the blond. “Something like that.”

“Here.” The blond said again, this time tugging down the tray in front of the teen and setting the treats. When they weren’t touched right away, the blond shifted half way in his seat and really looked into the teen’s face. 

“I’m Key.”

“Tayl…” He cut himself off as he spoke his no-longer-name name. “Umm I don’t actually know my real name.”

“Like your Korean name?” Key asked, moving to open his own drink and take a sip. “Mine’s Kim Kibum, but I prefer Key.”

“No, well yes, but no. Its a long story.” Not Taylor said, struggling to figure out how to put things into words when he didn’t really know what was going on. 

“Well by my calculations we have at least 10 hours left in this flight.” He reached over and cracked the teen’s can and held it to him. “Have a drink, god knows what we’re going to be served at dinner.” 

Sighing, the teen tried to begin, “My name was Taylor in the US but its not my real name. I’ve been in foster care most of my life but I’m going back to Korea now. My new social worker knows my name but no one told me yet.”

Nodding, Key didn’t speak. He clearly understood that it was a difficult topic for Taylor to talk about. “Do you want me to just call you Taylor then?”

“Ummm, not really.” He hoped he wasn’t about to offend the stranger who had bought him a snack. He sipped his own drink as he thought about what to say next. “You can just call me Tay for now I guess.” 

“Well that’s almost half a Korean name.” Key said, opening his chips. “How old are you?” 

Taken aback by the question, the teen blurted out “16” and then promptly choked on his mouthful of chips. 

Patting his new friend on the back, Key laughed. “So that makes me your hyung. I’m nearly 18.” 

“Hyung.” Tay tested the word out, rolling it around on his tongue. It wasn’t like he hadn’t heard the word before or even said it, but it was the first time that he was going to be able to use it in real life. 

“Do you even speak Korean?” 

Tay smiled into his can, “Yes.” He began, “I started teaching myself a few years ago. I’ve wanted to go back to Korea for as long as I can remember so I figured that the best thing to do was start learning the language. I’m sure I’m not great and my pronunciation is crap sometimes, but I think I can get by.” 

“Cool.” Key nodded. “Do you want to practice?”

Nodding enthusiastically, Tay grinned. “That would be awesome.” He said switching to Korean. 

Key grinned back “Ahh my new dongsaeng, this flight isn’t going to be nearly as boring as I thought.” And with that, he burst into speech, telling Tay all about his life and his family and his friends. An only child from a wealthy family, his parents were rarely home and his grandmother had raised him until her death the last winter. He was currently returning to Seoul from New York on a single stop flight after a post Christmas shopping trip. 

His parents didn’t care, as long as he didn’t stay for more than two weeks and didn’t spend more than three digits shopping. His school was starting again in two days and he had to be back for the start of classes otherwise his spending limit would likely be severely decreased for the next semester and he was flying coach because he’d changed his first class ticket for a bit of extra spending money. 

Key became even more animated when he found out that Tay was going to be attending a boarding school near Seoul. His excitement hardly dwindled when Tay couldn’t tell him which school and that it wouldn’t likely be the same one he went to. 

“Well no matter what, hopefully our schools aren’t too far apart. I’ve got a car so I can come pick you up on weekends and we can hang out.” He seemed so excited for it that Tay couldn’t help but be excited himself. 

“You’ll have to give me your number and we can plan to meet up.” Key dug out his phone and unlocked it. 

“I don’t have a phone.” Tay said feeling embarrassed. 

“Right.” Key nodded as if it didn’t phase him and he dug out a scrap of paper and a pen from his own bag. He scribbled down his number and handed it to Tay. “Well here’s mine so you’ll be able to call me from a school phone.” 

Tay folded the paper and put it into his pocket, agreeing to call Key the moment he knew what was going on. 

Dinner was served shortly after that and the teens traded food back and forth. A movie was scheduled to begin after the mess was cleared and Key dug out his own headsets, situating them so that they could share earbuds. 

Tay found himself drifting off again, seeming to catch up on all of the sleep he had missed since the announcement that he was heading back to Korea. 

Key shook him awake before the plane was set to begin landing. “Now don’t forget to call me.” He brandished a long finger in Tay’s face, “Don’t make me have to hunt you down.”

Tay grinned, “I promise.” 

They exited the plane together but where Key had to head off to baggage claim, Tay was forced to head through customs alone. 

Strange smells and the loud, unfamiliar sound of Korean being spoken rapidly and at high volume and his brain was forced into overdrive as he tried to adjust to the new overflow of language. 

He emerged from the inner part of the airport to see a severe looking man holding a sign with his Americanized name on it. The man didn’t speak as Tay walked over to him, he simply turned and walked away as if expecting to be followed. 

Scurrying after him he was grateful that his carry-on bag was only a small battered brown suitcase and that it wasn’t heavy with possessions. 

One of the very few times that he was grateful that he didn’t have much stuff. 

The smell of exhaust and sweaty bodies hit him like a wave as they walked into the heat and sun out of the airport doors. A long line of cars waited to pick up travellers and his new handler moved towards a sleek black car. 

Stomach rolling, Tay swallowed hard and tried to follow without bumping into the crowds of people fighting for a car. 

Bumping and apologizing, Tay felt his stomach heave and he couldn’t hold it in as his nerves caught up to him. Turning around so as not to lose his airplane dinner on the strangers in front of him but he miscalculated and misjudged the distance of the person behind hime. 

Vomit covered shiny black shoes that jumped back in disgust. 

“Watch it! Oh this is just great!” The tall, black haired man yelled, kicking his feet in a sad attempt to clear the mess from the leather.

“I’m sorry!” Tears sprang to his eyes and the young boy flinched when he saw an arm raise in front of him. 

“Hey, calm down, I’m not going to hit you or anything.” Through wet eyes, Tay thought that the man looked too young to be dressed in such a formal suit but he couldn’t really make out any facial features. 

An angry snort from behind him signalled that his handler was there before a handful of bills were thrust towards the puke covered stranger. 

Tay opened his mouth to apologize and the dark haired boy in front of him flinched like he thought he was about to be puked on again. Sad, embarrassed tears began to form in Tay’s eyes, but before he could actually apologize large rough hands gripped his shoulders and pulled him away. 

There was no point in struggling and Tay allowed himself to be pushed into the car. His handler moved to the front passenger seat and without a word, the driver pulled out. 

A large yellow envelope was passed back to him. Opening it he was surprised to find how much information was actually inside. 

A school pamphlet, guide and map told him that he was going to the prestigious Seoul Academy. He was expected to keep a grade average of no less than 85% in all his classes since he was going to be placed there as a scholarship case. Tay figured that it was to make it sound better than a social worker case. 

Meals would be provided, which was good because he was apparently not allowed to get a part time job during school months. He would be living in a dorm all year round until he graduated, including off school time when the staff would be running reduced. 

Uniforms would be provided; one for gym, one for special occasions or visits, five for everyday wear. Most students only received one free uniform and had to purchase any additional ones but with his case, he was allowed extra. He would have to wear his own clothing on weekends as laundry service picked up Saturday mornings and returned Sunday afternoons. 

He was also provided all his books and supplies, including a laptop that would be necessary to complete assignments. It was his responsibility to care for his things, no replacements would be given for his own carelessness. 

A list of his classes would be given to him the morning he started and would be based on his transcripts. 

And lastly, he was going to have a roommate, someone who was paying to attend that school. Someone that he wasn’t allowed to distract from their own studies. 

It sounded like a dream compared to what he was use to. Settling back into his seat, Tay smiled as he pulled out the last piece of paper. Breathing deep, he began to read to the words spelling out the new information about him.

“Lee Taemin.”


	4. Chapter 4

The large gray stone building that they pulled up to was formidable and powerful looking. It made Taemin wonder how long the school had been standing there and how many generations had been through its doors. It was nothing like the red brick schools of the US, most of the ones he attended not having been there more than 50 or so years. 

The wrought iron fencing was meant to make the place look more imposing considering the gates looked as though they hadn’t been closed in decades. Sharp spokes lined the top and it made Taemin think of a prison more than a school. 

The car pulled to a stop outside a set of large stone steps and Taemin gathered up his papers and shoved them into his bag. He opened the door and slid out of the car just as a well dressed middle aged man came out of the heavy looking wood doors. 

He greeted Taemin’s keeper with a small bow and a handshake and a flurry of fast paced Korean. Taemin blinked, trying to keep up and managing rather well for someone who’s greatest amount of Korean listening was short attempts on Netflix when he had the chance. 

The two men then turned towards Taemin, his keeper nodding and without a word, got back in the car and Taemin watched it drive away. It was shocking to say the least and Taemin couldn’t believe that he was just left like garbage. He let out a shocked sound and stared out the gates at the tail lights of the car. 

“Welcome to my school.” The Headmaster said in English, drawing Taemin’s attention back to him. The teen looked towards him and gave a shaky smile. 

“Hello.” He greeted in shaky Korean. 

“You speak Korean?” He asked again, waiting for Taemin to reply. 

Taemin nodded. “I am more comfortable listening, but I will work hard at speaking.” He swallowed hard, hoping that that was the right answer. 

“You will have lots of practice now.” He spoke slowly and steadily so that Taemin could follow. “You’ll be expected to speak Korean during all classes, except English of course.” He placed a hand on Taemin’s shoulder and gestured towards the door. “Let’s go inside.” 

Taemin nodded and allowed himself to be shuffled in the school. 

The atrium of the building looked more like the entrance to a hotel than a school. The office was set off to the right and that was were they headed first. Taemin smiled and bowed to the secretary who smiled back. She handed the Headmaster some papers, which he read through quickly and then passed to Taemin as he led him back out of the office. 

“Here is your class schedule, your records indicate that you have been moved ahead two years however, we want to make sure that you are going to be able to handle it with the included language change so we will start you down where you should be and will reassess in a few weeks.” 

Taemin nodded as he read over his schedule. It took a moment for him to adjust to the new writing, in his mind he translated the characters to romanized letters. He knew that it wasn’t the best way but it made it easier in the beginning for his mind to switch. 

“Do you have any questions?” 

Taemin shook his head, “I don’t think so.” He answered honestly. So far everything was fairly similar to all his other moves. He followed as they walked down the halls. 

The hallways were bright and open, a deep contrast to the exterior of the building. The floors were hardwood not the linoleum he was use to and the doors to the classrooms that branched off weren’t made of steel and painted a murky yellow. 

As they walked, the Headmaster pointed out where the different wings of the school led and told him how the school connected together. Taemin nodded from time to time, gaping around in awe. When they finally reached the dorms, Taemin found out that they could be accessed from both the school and the yard. 

He gave an awkward bow as he took the dorm key and passcodes from his new Headmaster. It was going to take some getting use to but he always liked the gesture. It made him feel more important to bow. 

Taemin punched in the lock code and pushed open the door. Everything was oddly silent for a boy’s dorm but he guessed that most of the students hadn’t arrived back from their break yet. They walked down the carpeted hall and stopped outside a room with a blue door. There were no numbers, just names plates to the right of the door. 

The name Choi Minho was written on the second marker. “Your roommate should be returning shortly. He is the second son from the Choi Corporations and you are to make sure that you do not disrupt his learning. I hope I don’t have to remind you that you are not here as a paying member of our student community and any infractions on your part will not be taken lightly.” He patted Taemin on the shoulder and Taemin knew that it was a warning. 

“I will study hard and ensure that I am not a bother to any other student.” It was a variant of what he was always told to say to his new foster families. They generally didn’t believe him and by the doubtful look on the Headmaster’s face, he didn’t believe Taemin either. 

“I’ll leave you to get settled.” He waited until Taemin put his key in the lock and opened the door before he turned and walked away. 

Taemin’s heart raced, he had been expecting a little more than that but he figured that it was a warmer greeting than he was use to and would just accept it. Knees shaking, Taemin stepped across the threshold and into his new home. 

The room was painted white and opened to a small living area. Small couches, beanbag chairs, coffee table and television. 

It was clean, like the housekeeping staff had just left. His information package told him that housekeeping only came during the holidays to make sure everything was as it should be. Otherwise they were to keep their own rooms clean and tidy.

Off to the right was the kitchen. It was nothing special. Fridge, small stove, microwave and a small table and chairs that could seat four people. 

It was still better than most of the houses he had lived in back in the US. 

Straight in from the living area was the bedroom, there was no break in the room except that the living area was carpeted with grey carpet and the bedroom with blue. Carrying his beat up bag in to the bedroom he saw that half the room was covered by posters of female celebrities and various sports teams. A blue comforter and sheet set covered the bed on that side. Green was the colour on the other with a large clothing bag draped over the end of the bed. 

The furniture was all light wood, two desks and two bookshelves, one nightstand per bed. Sitting on one desk was a closed laptop and a set of textbooks, the other held the same but was decorated with pictures, books, cds and a small cactus. 

Dropping his bag on the green bed, Taemin moved to examine what he figured was the shared closet on the blue side of the room. Designer clothing and uniforms took over nearly the entire thing, spaced out like the occupant of the room was use to having it all to himself. 

Taemin closed the door, he would just use the drawers under his bed for his clothing. He sighed and pulled out all of his information again. 

Lee Taemin, born July 18 parents unknown. Born in Seoul, South Korea and sent to the United States at the age of two after his parents were killed. Death certificates unavailable. No living relations able to take custody. 

He was sent to America in the hopes that an American family would adopt him to keep him out of the overcrowded child service system in his own country. After 14 years of attempts, it was deemed impossible to place Taemin, renamed Taylor Kim for American sensibilities, and he has been ordered to return to his country of birth. 

It was a very short introduction and didn’t really give Taemin any information that he hadn’t already known. However it couldn’t stop the small smile from spreading across the teen’s face. He was where he always hoped to be, he had finally come home. 

Maybe now he could find out who he was, find out where he really came from and maybe even find those relatives that couldn’t take him in. He was older now, he didn’t really need anything except someone to call family. 

He set the papers in his nightstand and flopped down onto the bed. “Oh my god.” He moaned as he sank back into the cushy mattress and pillow. He couldn’t believe how comfortable it was. Yawning and feeling the jet lag setting in regardless of his sleep on the plane, Taemin decided to take a short nap. 

Closing his eyes with a smile, Taemin drifted off.


	5. First Encounters

The room had darkened by the time that Taemin woke up and he figured that he had slept for about an hour. Stretching, Taemin sat up and ruffled his hair. He felt a bit groggy but shook his head to clear it. Deciding to unpack his things, he stood up and opened up his bag.

After pulling everything out, he fingered a small repaired tear in the bottom of his bag. Placing his few articles of street clothing in one drawer, he opened up the clothing bag and put away his uniforms. The black material of the cloth felt expensive and Taemin guessed that the jacket of one of his uniforms cost more than all his other clothing combined. Before they were thrift store finds. 

It took him less than ten minutes to situation himself and it made him feel pathetic that the only thing his had to place on his bookshelf that wasn’t his school books was his stolen Korean language textbook. No pictures, no knickknacks, nothing personal at all. 

As much as he wanted to be depressed about it, he couldn’t. Nodding to himself, Taemin ended up digging out a pair of his school provided pyjamas, his roommate wasn’t back yet and he was going to take advantage of that fact and take a shower. 

Slipping into the bathroom that he hadn’t examined yet, Taemin stripped out of the clothing he had been wearing for over 24 hours. He hadn’t seen a laundry basket in the other room so he looked around and found a covered wicker basket in the corner. Biting his lip, he tossed in his dirty things. A cupboard beside the basket revealed towels and a look under the sink showed another basket that Taemin guessed was for towels. 

Turning the shower dial to just a notch a few settings away from the hottest setting. Steam began billowing out of the curtain causing it move with the hot, moist air. Taemin scratched at a scab on his elbow and toed his right foot into the bathmat on the floor. 

Blood slowly ran down from the now open would and Taemin cursed. He clambered into the white porcelain tub and adjusted the shower head. He had read that often there weren’t these kind of bathroom set ups in Korea so he did a happy wiggle at his luck. 

The hot water felt good on his skin, the bruises on his back that had been agitated with all of the sitting he did on the plane ached. He was looking forward to hopefully having these ones heal before getting new ones. 

It was amazing how people could take this for granted. Hot water, soap and the feeling of being clean and warm. Using soap that wasn’t his, he lathered and rinsed and repeated until his skin was wrinkled and pruney. 

He had never been able to stay in the shower as long as he wanted. Usually he took as short as shower as possible and at his last foster home there had even been a timer on the shower. Shampooing his hair, he began to giggle as he played with the bubbles. He pulled his hair up into spikes and flattened it over and over again.   
When he finally got out of the shower, he did it with great reluctance. After quickly drying off, he dressed in his pyjamas that were warm from the hot air. They were crisp and obviously brand new and he could have cried at how soft the material felt against his skin. 

The school’s name was embroidered on the sleeve of the gray cotton and Taemin traced it with his finger. Looking in the mirror, he was using his fingers to brush out his hair when he heard the door lock of his room click and the door open. 

A deeper than expected for a teen boy voice was talking and Taemin felt his stomach flutter with nerves again as he prepared to meet his roommate. 

“Yeah and then this kid turns around and pukes on my shoes.” Taemin could hear the sound of more than one person moving inside the room and he froze as the voice continued. “He looked about 10 so I couldn’t even pretend to be mad and before I could make sure he was okay, his dad tossed money at me and dragged him away.”

“That sucks, but I’m sure it wasn’t like he meant to puke on you. He was probably super embarrassed.” The second person spoke, their voice also deep and sounding much older than Taemin’s 16 years. “Especially if he was like 10.” 

“It’s still freaking frustrating and gross. You think he would have looked before vomiting at least.” The first voice complained, but Taemin could tell from his hiding in the bathroom that there wasn’t any malice in it. “Turn, look, vomit.”

“Yeah well, suck it up princess.” The second voice teased, “Weren’t you just complaining that they were pinching your toes just last week.”

“Again, shut up.” The first boy was laughing now and the sound was entering the bedroom area. “It’s the principle of the matter.” There was a pause and then, “Something’s different.”

“It doesn’t smell like old gym socks and your weird cologne?” The owner of the second voice clearly liked to tease their friend. 

Taking a deep breath, Taemin began to brace himself to step out of the bathroom. 

“Maybe its your new roommate?” The tone of the second voice changed and it made Taemin swallow hard. It wasn’t exactly an excited or even happy tone. 

“There’s nothing here though, shouldn’t there be stuff?” 

Taemin groaned silently, of course that would be weird and gave him the longing to actually have things. So he took that as the moment to make himself known. He played with the edge of his sleeve and shuffled out the door. “Hi.” He said timidly. 

It made the shorter of the two boys standing in the room jump. His hair was dyed three different shades of blonde and had larger than average nostrils. “Holy crap!” He clutched at his chest dramatically.

The other was taller than his friend and had shaggy brown dyed hair. He was staring at Taemin like he had three heads. “You.” 

Taemin’s eyes went wide as a glimmer of recognition flashed through his mind. He let out a shaky breath as he made eye contact with the boy he was assuming was going to be his roommate. 

The shorter boy, who actually looked to be the same height as Taemin, he hummed in confusion “I’m missing something aren’t I?”

“This is the kid that puked on me.” He said, not looking away from Taemin. “You puked on me. Outside the airport. You puked on me and then your dad shoved money at me. But you’re like 10.”

“I… I… I…” Taemin stuttered. He hadn’t even been in his room a day and already his roommate hated him. 

“Aww go easy on the poor guy Gigantor, can’t you see you’re making him nervous.” The blonde said grinning at Taemin. 

“I’m not making him nervous.” The taller boy said, glaring at his friend before turning back to Taemin and taking in the look on his face and the way that Taemin was starting to curl in on himself. “Am I making you nervous?”

Taemin nodded quickly, head moving rapidly belaying his nervousness. “I’m sorry.” He said, hoping that he was using the proper honorific speech. Korean was so confusing to someone who hadn’t grown up speaking it. 

“Don’t be sorry!” The shorter boy said, “Ignore Tall Man grumpy over there. I’m Kim Jonghyun.” He gave a small bow and a wave. 

Taemin swallowed hard, “Lee Taemin.” He paused. “And I’m not 10. I’m 16.” He muttered, trying to stamp down any bit of offence he had taken. 

The taller boy had the grace to flush slightly. “Sorry?” It was more of a question than an apology.

“And that wasn’t my dad.” Taemin continued, hoping he wasn’t going to offend either of the guys but he didn’t want them to get the wrong idea. 

Jonghyun looked confused. “Huh?”

“The money guy? He’s not my dad.” Taemin said, he shrugged but didn’t elaborate any further.   
Jonghyun didn’t push it, he just looked confused and like he hoped Taemin would explain without him having to ask. 

“Sorry, I just assumed.” Minho said, not sounding sorry at all. “I’m Choi Minho.” 

“Aww, the beginnings of a beautiful bromance.” Jonghyun pretended to wipe away a tear. “New little buddy!” He grinned a wide grin and jump towards Taemin and pulled him into a hug. 

Taemin froze, not use to people touching him in a nice way and completely unsure of how to act around a stranger he just met hugging him. 

“Jjong, I think you’re scaring him.” Minho said, looking at Taemin’s wide and clearly nervous eyes. 

Jonghyun squeezed harder and Taemin could feel the muscles in his arms tighten. It was disconcerning to feel the strength in his arms and not knowing the person that strength belonged to. 

“He’s adorable and I think I love him already.” Jonghyun rocked back and forth and laughed. 

“And I think that you’re an idiot.” Minho said, moving over to his bed and opening his suitcase. “You’re also scaring him.” 

“I am not!” Jonghyun said defensively sounding hurt. “Am I?” He pulled his head back to peer at Taemin’s face. 

Body stiff in Jonghyun’s embrace, Taemin bit his lip. He wanted to say yes, but he was also very wary. Questions like that were often loaded questions that would result in punishments if he answered wrong. Not everyone was nice and it was hard to tell right away with some people how they were going to react. 

His last foster parents seemed nice and kind at first, but that was because he couldn’t see the bruises on the bottom of the other kids’ feet. 

“Hey, are you alright?” Jonghyun asked, more concerned now as he released Taemin and held him arm’s length away from him. 

Shaking his head, Taemin realized that he was being stared at and he quickly apologized, frantically bowing as he did. “I’m sorry. I’m really really sorry.”

“Hey, calm down.” Jonghyun said, looking concerned and confused, “Listen, sorry if I came on too strong.”

“Its okay.” Taemin’s voice was small, almost a whisper, still worried about giving the wrong answer.

Minho watched them silently, wondering if his new roommate was weird or just nervous. He also wondered if his best friend was oblivious to the new comer’s discomfort, or if he was just stupid. 

“Hyung, maybe you should leave the poor guy be and stop mauling him.” Minho walked over and tugged his older, yet short, friend away. 

Jonghyun pouted, but allowed himself to be pulled far enough away that he could flop on Taemin’s bed. 

He groaned as his body slumped into the soft mattress. 

Minho rolled his eyes. “Sorry about him. He’s just an idiot.” Still pissed about the puking earlier, Minho wasn’t really going out of his way to make his new roommate comfortable. 

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.” Jonghyun’s pout deepened and he wriggled around to get comfortable. 

“And I’m going to pretend that you’re going back to your own room so I can grab some sleep before school begins again. We don’t always get what we want.” Minho began to unpack his things, pausing at the closet to see that Taemin hadn’t hung anything in there. He wondered where Taemin’s things were, but he wasn’t going to ask. Hopefully he wouldn’t have to deal with a roommate for long. 

A pair of rolled eyes and the shortest in the room pulled himself off the bed. “Fine. I can see when I’m not wanted. I’m leaving.” With a huff resounding in mock hurt, Jonghyun pretended to storm off. He had to stop and put on his shoes while pretending to be put out. 

Minho rolled his eyes. “I really am sorry about him.” Minho said, turning look at Taemin and take in his appearance. “We’re trying to house train him, but he’s a stubborn one.” He could pretend for now that he was okay with a new roommate. The housing office would be open in the morning and he could deal with this then.

He flashed a smile that generally brought girls to their knees and he watched Taemin’s eyes widen. He knew that he was good looking and while he didn’t normally use his charm on guys he figured that when Taemin was changing rooms later on it wouldn’t make the younger feel like it was his fault that Minho didn’t want him there. 

Taemin felt something inside flutter at the smile and he pushed the feeling back down and told himself to ignore it. His roommate was obviously just being friendly and he appreciated it and didn’t want to make things awkward this early into their living together. 

“So we should talk more tomorrow.” Minho said, closing the closet and digging out a pair of non-uniform pyjamas, “But its almost 10 and I have to get up early for practice tomorrow so I’m going to shower and head to bed.” 

Taemin nodded. “I’m sorry for… earlier.” He said, unable to acknowledge his embarrassing puking earlier. 

Minho shrugged, like Jonghyun had said earlier those shoes were too small anyway. “Just try not to puke on me again.”

Taemin nodded but Minho didn’t see it, he had already walked into the bathroom and shut the door. 

Sighing, Taemin pulled out his uniform for the next day and lay it over his desk chair before crawling back to bed for the second time that day. He’d already started off on the wrong foot with his roommate and he hoped that the next day would bring better things. 

Exhausted mentally more than physically, Taemin fell asleep listening to the sound of the shower running.


	6. Six

The next morning dawned bright and sunny with no hint of snow in the air or the forecast with higher than normal temperatures reading on the thermostat. It looked like it was going to be a fantastic day weather wise at least. 

He woke up to the sounds of an alarm clock blaring and he sat bolt up right in shock. In the next bed Minho sat up groaning and stretching. Taemin took a shaky breath and lay back down. He couldn’t remember the last time that he woke up to an alarm clock and not someone pushing him out of bed. 

Minho climbed out of bed and shuffled to the bathroom while Taemin waited. He could wait until Minho was done to get up himself, not wanting to get in the older boy’s way. After the reception last night, he couldn’t believe that Minho was exactly excited to have a roommate. 

Maybe he was use to having the room all to himself and didn’t want to su ddenly have to share, especially with a younger transfer student from America. Hopefully they would be able to really move past the whole puke thing and get along.

He didn’t move when Minho came back out of the room and tried to avert his eyes as he watched Minho change out of his pyjamas and dress in running shorts and a t-shirt. Taemin glimpsed a muscled back and Taemin felt his face flush before he squeezed his eyes shut. 

He kept his eyes closed until he heard Minho walk out of the bedroom spot, his feet treading lightly to the kitchen where Taemin heard the fridge open and close before the door to their room slammed shut. 

Then Taemin dragged himself out of bed, determined to at least try and start the day off on a good foot. There was no point in waiting any longer and there was nothing that he could do to change what had already happened so he could only work with what he was about to do. 

Grabbing his uniform, not yet feeling comfortable enough to change in the open room, he headed off to take his turn in the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth, he thought about how nice it was to get a full night’s sleep. To get more than a full night’s sleep, actually being able to catch up on some of the sleep he had been missing his entire life. 

The bags that he thought were almost permanent fixtures under his eyes, had actually lightened so that they were barely noticeable. He finger combed his hair and frowned at his roots coming in. He was going to have to figure out what to do about that since without a job he didn’t have any money to buy a box of hair dye. 

Maybe letting it fade back to black was the best choice. 

Resigned that there was nothing he could do about anything else at the moment, he left the room and gathered up the school books he was going to need for the day according to his schedule. He had found a simple black backpack under his desk and put all his things in it, grateful that he didn’t have to lug around all those books without a bag. 

In the kitchen he looked around the cupboards for a glass. If he was lucky the cafeteria would have coffee but for now a glass of cold water would suffice. His stomach growled and he looked at the microwave clock. It was just after 7 by then and he remembered reading that the cafeteria stopped serving food at 7:30. If he hurried he had plenty of time to eat. 

Finishing his water, Taemin quickly washed his glass and put it away. As he turned to leave the kitchen he caught sight of a fruit bowl filled with a variety of fruit and a bright yellow sticky note. 

His name was written in large letters and he plucked the note up to read it. It took a moment to properly translate it but he figured out the jist of it fairly quickly. Minho’s mother apparently had the kitchen stocked once a week while they were at class and Taemin was allowed to eat whatever he wanted as long as he cleaned up after himself and added to the list on the fridge anything they ran out of when he was eating. 

Trying to take the note at face value and not putting his insecurities in everything, Taemin took an apple and a tangerine, grateful that he wouldn’t have to brave the cafeteria by himself on the first day, first thing in the morning. 

As he munched on his apple, he explored the kitchen better than his quick look the night before. He’d already seen most of the cupboard contents so he opened the fridge and gasped. It was full of containers. Most of them he couldn’t recognize at first glance but somethings looked standard enough, including little yellow boxes that looked like juice. 

He picked one and tossed it in his bag with his tangerine. He smiled, happy to know that regardless of what the cafeteria had, he was going to have something to eat. Old habits died hard and he was grateful that he was going to have something for lunch.

More nervous than usual for starting a new school, Taemin paced around the dorm until it was time to leave for class. 

Opening the dorm door, Taemin was hit with a wave of excited male voices. The hallway he stepped out into was drastically busier than when he arrived. Steeling himself, Taemin stepped outside admits the boys moving in half dressed states between rooms, banging on doors and yelling. Unconsciously, Taemin tried to curl into himself. There were just too many people in one place and that always made him tense and nervous. 

Slowly, he let himself move into the crowd. 

No one paid him any attention, all too busy with their own business, but his eyes darted around trying to take in what was happening in every direction all at once.

Trying to recall what way to go without digging out the school map, Taemin wasn’t noticed until someone jostled into him. 

“Sorry new kid!” The bumper yelled, not stopping in his mad dash up the hallway. 

Taemin shook with fear, it was irrational and Taemin knew that there wasn’t a reason to be afraid of anyone there, yet. So he kept his head down and his shoulders hunched, praying that no one else would notice him or stop him and ask questions. 

He missed that most of the boys behind him were stopping and watching him, whispering about who he was and where he came from. It would have made him even more glad that Minho had allowed him to eat his food. 

As he walked into the main area of the school, Taemin gave up trying to remember his way by memory and dug out his map. The math and science wing of the school was where he needed to go and of course it was the furthest away from the residences. 

The school hallways were still fairly deserted and it was fairly easy for Taemin to navigate his way to the classroom.

Sitting at his desk was the teacher who looked up as Taemin entered the room. “Ah, you must be our new student, Lee Taemin.”

Taemin bowed, “Yes, that's me.”

“Welcome to Seoul.” The teacher had a friendly voice and smile. “I hope you’ve begun to settle in nicely.” 

Taemin nodded. 

“Your desk is over there.” He pointed to the desk in the last row, third seat back. “The other students will be arriving any moment, so if you’d like to ask any questions before they do?”

Shaking his head, Taemin didn’t speak. His mouth felt dry and any words he might have had got caught in his throat. 

“Well if you think of anything, please feel free to ask.” He gave his student a smile. So far the boy didn’t seem like the trouble making kind and contrary to what the records he was given said, the teacher didn’t really believe that that was true. Maybe bouncing back and forth between foster homes so often had a negative effect on his school life. 

He was going to wait and judge the boy as he got to know him. Hopefully his fellow teachers would do the same. “Why don’t you take a seat and when everyone is here you can introduce yourself.” 

Taemin swallowed hard but nodded, he headed to his seat and began to pull out his books for the class. Opening the textbook, he tried to scan it once again hoping that he wouldn’t get too far behind with his lack of practical use of the language. 

Hardly a minute later, students began to trickle in, each one staring at Taemin as they took their seats and continuing to look at him after. Face flushing with embarrassment, Taemin looked down at his desk and tried to ignore the looks. 

“Listen up everyone, stop staring at our new student and turn your eyes towards me.” The teacher spoke out. “I know that you’re all interested in what’s happening but I’d like to remind you right now that you are still in class and will be expected to learn. Now Taemin if you wouldn’t mind introducing yourself, hopefully this will dull some of the curious minds.”

Taemin nodded and voice shaking he stood up, chair legs scratching noisily on the tile floor. He begun to speak quietly, his voice hardly up above a whisper, “My name is Lee Taemin and I’m from the United States, I hope that we will soon be friends?” He looked to the teacher for permission to sit down and was given it with a nod. 

“I expect you all to make Taemin feel welcome and pretend that you are all respectful and productive members of society and not the trouble makers you usually are. Now open your books to page 145 and let’s begin.” The was no more time for nonsense and Taemin was grateful that unlike his previous schools where they essential had question and answer periods for each new student.

Trying to ignore the stares, Taemin looked at the teacher and his textbook and after a quick lesson they were told to work silently. Unfortunately though, the girl in the next seat didn’t listen and poking him in the arm said, “Hey.” 

“Hi.” Taemin said, trying to keep his eyes on his work. He swallowed hard and turned the page of his notes. 

“I’m Sulli.” She was persistent. 

“Nice to meet you.” His tone was flat and he hoped that she was going to get the message. 

“You know you really should look at someone when you say that.” Sulli’s voice was light and when Taemin turned his head to look at her feeling sightly ashamed, he could see that she was smiling. 

“Sorry. I just don’t want to upset the teacher on the first day.” Taemin admitted telling a half truth. He didn’t want to admit that he was having a harder time with the word problems than he should. 

“Honestly Mr. Kim doesn’t care if we talk as long as our work gets done.” Sulli scribbled an answer down in her book. “When did you arrive here? In Korea? Your Korean is pretty good.”

“It really isn’t.” Taemin said modestly. “I only arrived yesterday and I’ve been teaching myself Korean so I’m not sure exactly how good I am.”

“Wow cutting it pretty short. Your parents really didn’t give you much time to adjust.”

“I don’t have parents.” Taemin explained, embarrassed. “I’m a ward of the country, but it’s okay.” He tried to backtrack when he saw the horrified look on Sulli’s face. 

“I’m so sorry, I mean, I didn’t mean to say anything that was offensive.” She bit her lip and Taemin thought that she looked more upset than was warranted.

“Don’t worry about it.” He smiled, “it’s not the worst thing that someone has ever said to me.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better.” 

The bell signalling the change of classes rang and Taemin was in no hurry to pack his things. He’d waited until the first rush of people left before getting ready to leave. 

“Not very talkative are you?” Sulli said, slowly packing her things. 

Taemin shrugged. “Not really. I don’t usually have much to say.” The class was half empty and Taemin started to pack his things. 

“So I am. Talkative that is.” Sulli grinned and Taemin squinted his eyes at her wondering how she could bounce back and forth emotional so quickly. “Did you want to have lunch with me? Or rather me and my group?”

Taemin looked at her skeptically. Usually kids didn’t take to the new Korean kid this quickly. He hummed to himself and thought that maybe it was different because he was just the new kid here, being Korean wasn’t something that made him different. 

“You want to have lunch with me?” He wanted to try and read her face as she answered. 

Her smile looked genuine when she answered. “Not going to lie, we never get new kids here and I’m totally excited to snatch you up for myself.” 

Taemin wasn’t exactly sure how to feel about that but he also didn’t want to miss out on possibly making a new friend. 

“Well you’re honest.”He said as they walked towards the door. “Okay I’d like to have lunch with you.” 

“Excellent!” Sulli gave him a huge smile. “What class do you have next?” 

“Science, I think.” He pulled out his schedule to confirm and looked at Sulli when she gave a little gasp. 

“Me too! Let me see your schedule!” Without waiting, she plucked the paper from his hands and scanned it. “We have almost every class together.” She exclaimed happily. 

Taemin took his paper back when Sulli handed to him. “That’s great.” They walked out in to the busy hallway and Taemin held his bag closer to him. 

Navigating through the crowd, Sulli chattered away the entire time and Taemin enjoyed it considering he didn’t have to contribute anything and could just listen. By the time they arrived at the class he had learned more information about Sulli in five minutes than he learned about Eric in three months. 

Again, Taemin was told to introduce himself. He was more confident this time having done it once already and having Sulli there as an almost friend didn’t hurt either. 

By the time lunch came, the apple he had eaten earlier had long stopped fulfilling his hunger and he was looking forward to the juice box thing and the tangerine in his bag. He happily followed the still chattering Sulli to the cafeteria, priding himself on his ability to follow Sulli’s one-sided conversation and actually pick up on most of the words. 

The cafeteria was loud and crowded. Taemin followed Sulli to the buffet line, amazed by how many foods were there. He happy picked rice and chicken, choosing safe foods that wouldn’t upset his stomach on his first week there. He had forgotten that meals were included for him and he grabbed a bottle of water at the end.

They walked over to an empty table and Sulli set her tray down before telling Taemin that she would be right back. He nodded, soon regretting that he didn’t ask her to stay. 

“Hey, new guy.” A deep voice said from behind him. 

Taemin stiffened and he swallowed his mouthful of rice. The owner of the voice moved around to slam his hands on the table in front of Taemin. The two trays bounced but nothing spilled. 

“I’m talking to you.” Hands on his back pushed him forward and he slammed hard into the table. His open bottle of water spilled all over his tray soaking everything so badly that the rice began to float. 

“Sulli is mine.” The large teen in front of him spoke, leaning down to get in Taemin’s face. Not that the younger could move if he tried with the hands on his back. “Don’t you be getting any ideas about doing anything with her.”

“I hardly know her.” Taemin winced, the pressure on his back getting too intense. He tried to keep in a little whimper but the hands tightened and he couldn’t help the little noise that escaped him.

“Keep it that way.” The pressure suddenly released and Taemin sat up abruptly with the lack of pressure. 

The cafeteria was silent, like everyone had been watching the exchange between Taemin and the scary jock like boy. Taemin whimpered again as he rubbed his sore shoulder. 

“What did Yunho want?” Sulli said, oblivious as to what had just happened. She had returned to the table with another girl with short blue hair. “Oh, this is Amber.” She said, gesturing to the girl as they sat down, Amber placing her own tray next to Sulli’s. 

Taemin didn’t want to admit that he had clearly just been threatened but he couldn’t lie. “He wanted to tell me that you were his girl.”

Sulli groaned and Amber laughed. “He’s at it again.” Amber teased, poking Sulli’s nose. 

“Eurgh.” Sulli said starting to eat her food. “You would think he’d get the hint by now. Just ignore him.” She said to Taemin, noticing that he wasn’t eating. “Do you not like it?”

Taemin looked confused for a moment before remembering his tray. “I knocked over my water when Yunho came over.” It wasn’t a lie exactly. 

“Oh no!” Sulli sad sadly. “Why don’t you get some more? Do you want me to come with you?”

Taemin shook his head. “I can only have one serving per meal.” 

“What?” Amber said looking really confused. “Why? You’re too skinny so don’t say you’re on a diet.”

“I’m here on a scholarship because I’m a ward of the country and so I can only get one meal at each meal. I have a tangerine in my bag though.” He dug out the orange fruit and wiggled it.  
The boxed juice came out as well. 

Sulli shook her head and passed Taemin’s tray to a passing student with a smile, they took it with a confused look and Taemin watched them take it to the tray emptying station. “Share ours.” She pushed her tray and Amber’s to the middle of the table. She must have noticed the negation on Taemin’s face and held up a hand to stop him from talking. “Don’t even argue, if either of us is still hungry we will do get more.”

“Its what friends do.” Amber said, reaching forward and stealing a piece of chicken from Sulli’s tray. “And it looks like you’re one of us now so accept it and eat.” 

Taemin had a feeling that this friendship wasn’t going to lead to winning many arguments, so he accepted without too much of a fight. 

“So what’s your cell number?” Sulli said after a few moments of they filling their faces. 

“I don’t have a cell phone.” Taemin said not really bothered by that fact. He was used to no having things that other people did and in his mind a cell phone was just one more thing to not feel sorry for himself about. 

“What? Who doesn’t have a cell phone?” Amber said, staring in disbelief at Taemin. 

“Can’t afford one, never really needed it or wanted it.” Taemin shrugged. He figured that he should be embarrassed but it was only a cell phone. 

Amber continued to look confused so Taemin diverged his information. “I’m here because the Korean government wouldn’t pay for me to stay in the American foster system any more. It was cheaper for them to put me up here than in the States.” He spoke quickly hoping that his Korean was translating properly. There was no point hiding his status, it would eventually come out anyways. He knew that from experience and it was just a waste of time to be embarrassed about his lack of money or his orphan status. It was who he was and his new friends would either accept it or not. 

“Well shit.”Amber swore, “We’re going to have to fix that.” 

“I can’t afford it.” Taemin said slowly, maybe he didn’t say that properly. 

Amber grunted at him, waving a hand as though dismissing his silly claims. “We will deal with it later.”

The bell rang again and Taemin marvelled in how fast the lunch hour had passed. He wasn’t looking forward to introducing himself over and over again but it was a necessary evil. He was rebuffed when he tried to take a trays but he followed behind Sulli who proclaimed that they both had English after lunch and that Amber was in her class. Both girls were disappointed to find out that Taemin was in a different class, but insisted on walking him to his before heading to their own.

Smiling at his first real cafeteria lunch with a friend, Taemin couldn’t even be upset about Yunho’s rather lame attempts at intimidation. He headed happily off to class and couldn’t believe his luck, maybe things were looking up and his search for his family would also be as lucky.


	7. Seven

Walking back to class after lunch with Amber and Sulli, Taemin shuffled along sandwiched between the two girls who chatted away with him like they’d been friends all their lives. It gave him a nice but odd feeling. He wasn’t use to making friends at all, let alone this quickly, it had even taken Eric almost two weeks to become his friend. Not the two hours it had taken Sulli. 

With the exception of his advanced English class, Sulli or Amber, or both, were in every one of his classes. Yunho was older and therefore wasn’t in any of his classes so Taemin made a mental note that he would only have to watch out for him outside of class. 

Realizing that he had been tuning out the girls’ gossip, Taemin jolted back to the moment as he figured out that he should be paying attention to the who was who of the school. 

“So Victoria is the captain of the cheerleading team. She’s actually really nice, but she puts on this tough mean girl exterior.” Sulli was filling Taemin in on all the ongoing school gossip. “She’s best friends with Yuri who thinks she’s dating Minho except that Minho broke up with her at the end of last year. She just won’t accept it because technically there is a marriage pact between Yuri’s family and their family.”

“What?” Taemin questioned. 

“Minho's older brother graduated already and is off in England attending university.” She rolled her eyes, “He was supposed to be the one engaged to Yuri but he went off and married some rich business man’s daughter in England.” 

“Oh.” Taemin nodded pretending he was understanding everything. 

“Yeah so Minho keeps turning her down and she keeps acting up.” Sulli shrugged. “But oh! Amber tell him about Jonghyun and Kibum!”

Amber rolled her eyes before she began, “It’s your favourite story, why don’t you tell it?”

“Because you tell it better.” Sulli pouted at her friend, receiving another eye roll for her troubles. 

Amber sighed, resigned. “My cousin Jonghyun and his friend Kibum are also technically engaged because of a family marriage pact.” They arrived at Taemin’s English class. “Jonghyun’s dad bretrothed him to his childhood friend’s unborn child when Jonghyun was like a year old or something, thinking that Kibum was going to be a girl. Except he wasn’t and the legal papers had already been drawn up and billions were now at stake if the pact were to be broken. So they figured what the hell.”

“But… what?” Taemin felt very confused, he thought that the feelings towards same-sex relationships weren’t yet exactly welcome. 

Amber grinned, “It’s totally not the norm but because of legal reasons, they have to wait until Jonghyun and Key are both of legal age to nullify the agreement.” There was something in Amber’s tone that made Taemin pause. 

“Unless they decide to just keep it up?” Taemin asked, he was trying to gage the tone that Amber was using. 

Sulli and Amber exchange a look, words waring between their eyes. The sound of the bell announcing the final moments to get to class rang and the topic was dropped as the girls had to rush to make their own classes on time. 

Squaring his shoulders to enter his class, Taemin walked in and headed to the empty seat closest to the window. When given the chance, he always took the seat that gave him an escape route. Call him paranoid or a product of the school-shooter generation, Taemin liked to be prepared.

Whispers followed him as he walked, not that they really bothered him considering he was always the new kid being talked about. No sooner did he take his seat was someone hissing at him from two seats behind him.

“That’s Kibum’s seat.” The boy said, his hair cut in a stylish wave. Only a couple empty seats remained and the hallway outside the door was no longer filled with fast paced moving bodies.

The quiet whispers in the room silenced as people tried to look at him without being totally noticeable. Not that it worked. Taemin just ignored them as he unpacked his bag, he was excited for a class that he figured was a guaranteed easy grade. It would help boost his average in the other classes he was worried he wouldn’t be as strong at. 

“I can’t wait to see what Kibum does.” A girl giggled from the back corner of the room. 

Footsteps echoed in the hall accompanied by a smooth male voice. “What are you waiting for Kibum to do?” The voice sounded familiar to Taemin, but he couldn’t exactly place it. 

The voice continued with a snarky tone. “I don’t particularly like being kept waiting when I’m being told to do something.” The owner of the voice walked in the room, his blond hair perfectly styled and his uniform just slightly off regulation with his undone tie and purple instead of white dress-shirt. He was looking at his nails, head down as though completely uninterested. 

He was accompanied by a familiar face, who’s own layered blond hair was fluffed and standing nearly straight on point. Jonghyun looked more approached in his uniform than he had the night before in his street clothes in Taemin’s dorm room. 

“New kid is in your spot.” The girl’s voice was gleeful and it made Taemin’s skin crawl. That tone back in the US never led to anything not sinister. 

Kibum’s head rose slowly, solidifying his nonchalance and his eyes were narrow as they settled on Taemin. 

The feeling of dread in Taemin’s stomach lifted as he recognized his flight seat mate and he couldn’t help the smile that lifted the corners of his lips. 

“Hey!” Jonghyun shouted as he recognized Taemin, a ridiculous grin on his face. His mouth opened to say more but he was cut off as Kibum shrieked in joy. 

“Tay!” The older boy hurried across the room and lifted Taemin out of his seat. He pulled him into a bone crushing hug. “Oh my god, you’re here!” He bounced around, dragging Taemin in a happy circle. “You didn’t call me!’ 

“Sorry.” Taemin said, still smiling. “I was going to this weekend after I was more settled.” 

“Well now you don’t have to and I don’t have to go to the trouble of tracking you down.” Key ruffled his hair and tossed his own backpack in the seat beside Taemin. 

“Am I really in your seat?” Taemin asked, “I can move if you want.” 

“No!” Key shushed him, “Its fine. You’re all set up there anyways. Jonghyun come over here and stop blocking the door.” He spoke fast and flapped his hand at Jonghyun. 

Someone in the class let out a little gasp and Key rolled his eyes. “You would think that I’m some kind of horrible bitch all the time the way that people talk.” An embarrassed air filled the room and it made Key smirk. 

“You are a total bitch, but you’re my bitch.” Jonghyun said. The other boy grinned and it made Taemin think of an overexcited puppy dog. “So this is your new son.” He walked over and dropped his own bag on the seat in front of Taemin. “We’ve already met.”

Key’s face twisted in confusion. “How?” He ignored the bitch comment, he’d get Jonghyun back for it later. 

“Hello Jonghyun-hyung.” Taemin said softly. “Its nice to see you again.” 

“Hyung? Why are you already calling him Hyung? What am I missing?” Key said, a grumpy look on his face. 

“This is Minho’s new roommate.” Jonghyun supplied, a funny look flashed in his eyes just for a moment before disappearing. 

The same look came upon Key’s face and he visibly had to work to remove it. “Well that just means I’ll know where to find you.” Key smiled at Taemin as their teacher walked into the room. 

The teacher blinked at the sight of Taemin in Key’s seat and Key allowing it but she didn’t say a thing. If Kibum were going to show acceptance to their new student, hopefully others would follow suit. She didn’t want to deal with any high school drama bullshit. Calling the class to order, she waited for Kibum to take his new seat and without any further preamble, class began.


End file.
